Almi

A Refugee

Non-Fiction - Biography
308 Pages
Reviewed on 06/22/2016
Buy on Amazon

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.

This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.

    Book Review

Reviewed by Maria Beltran for Readers' Favorite

Almi: A Refugee is a true life story written by Tiiu Priilaid-Kleyn that not only sets out to tell the story of how a woman defies expectations and conquers the extraordinary trials of her life, but is also a tale of love, determination and faith. A farm girl, Almi was born in Paavli, on Saaremaa, her parents' farm in Estonia, in 1917 when the First World War was coming to an end. At the age of nineteen, she ventures to Tallinn, the country’s capital city, where she meets her husband Aleksander. And in 1944, with three children in tow, the young family members, fearing the Russian Communists invading their country, become refugees in Sweden. When Russia demands the return of Estonian refugees from Sweden, the growing family flees to South America, but ends up in South Africa where they struggle to make a decent life for themselves. This is their story.

Almi: A Refugee is an extraordinary story about a woman who has an endless supply of endurance and hope. Guided by her mother’s diary, Tiiu Priilaid-Kleyn comes up with a story of dislocation that tugs at our hearts, especially because of the millions of Syrian, Iraqi and Afghan refugees pouring into Europe every day. What I like most about this biography is that it is not written out of sadness and frustration, but as an inspiration to anyone who is uprooted from their native lands and forced to live a complex life as a refugee. With pride and dignity, and against all odds, Almi and Aleksander raise their family in their adopted countries. Almi: A Refugee is a compelling read that follows a young family forced to flee their own country, but determined to find a home they can truly call their own.